VMC's Some Might Say: Rusholme Ruffians

The City juggernaut has thundered into form with six straight wins. Post match reaction to City's going toe to toe for the FA Cup win at Stoke...

David Platt:'We went to a back three when Vincent came off and Gael came on, but we felt we needed to go back to four later in the game and Javi Garcia was superb when he went alongside Joleon. We had a number of chances so we're disappointed we've not won by more but everyone knows this is a tough place to come at the best of times so we have to be happy. I thought our defenders were excellent today and did exactly what you need to do when facing the aerial threat Stoke pose so on that score, we're very happy to leave here with a clean sheet.

'It wasn't strange to see Pablo Zabaleta in that area because he often supports the attack and we encourage our full-backs to get forward whenever they can...he took the opportunity really well. We want to win both competitions that we're still involved in and we'll look forward to the draw tomorrow.

'I think we'll lose Vincent for a little while...It's too early to say how long he will be out but he has a slight pull on his calf and will miss the midweek game.'

Tony Pulis:'We wanted to have a go, but when you do that against the top teams, you leave yourselves open and they've got real quality when they break. In cup ties against the top, top teams, you need them to be a bit below par and you have to be right on it. But I thought Manchester City's approach was excellent. The attitude of their players and everything else was absolutely first class.

'We hoped we would get the opportunities, because we knew they would create chances, and then you are looking to get the breaks in front of goal. We had good opportunities on occasions, but never turned them into chances. Even with their goal, Matty Etherington could have played in Jon Walters down the line, but Zabaleta cuts it out and starts the move from which he eventually scores.'

Pablo Zabaleta:'It was a massive win on a very tough pitch. It is always difficult here but today we were fantastic, very solid on the park and aggressive...We won it two years ago and know how important the competition is. We want to win it again. It is always great to score and three goals this season is not bad for a full back! Now we are focused on Tuesday and QPR. We need to keep winning to try to catch Manchester United.'

CITY ON TWATTER:

Vincent Kompany:'On to the next round and a fifth consecutive clean sheet! I hope I won't be out for too long but the team seems to be strong as ever. #FACup.'

Sergio Aguero:'@pablo_zabaleta is some scorer! He started and finished the great play to win a challenging match at Britannia.'

David Silva:'Important victory in the always difficult Britania to go through into next round, now fully focussed on the QPR match #FACup #MCFC.'